Guest column: Ke'Chic is beyond local

After reading the July 14 article on Ke'Chic Boutique, "Shop till you drop," I have to say I am truly disappointed in the angle and approach utilized by The Diamondback.

When I received an email from reporter Julia Weaver asking to do a feature on Ke'Chic, I was excited about it. What I found when I opened that week's edition of the paper, however, was something very different than I expected. Instead of a true feature on my business, the article was riddled with phrases such as "if they can find it," "the store's name didn't ring a bell" and "I've never heard of it," and filled with comments about business longevity in College Park.

In my opinion, the article was not a feature. I feel as though if this were a true feature it would have focused on Ke'Chic, not on the opinions of others. A feature should have focused on the facts and the positive attributes of the store. Additionally, the choice of photos was not reflective of my boutique as whole. Ke'Chic is a clothing and accessory boutique. Yet, looking at the choice of photos, one would think I only carry shoes and jewelry.

I believe a feature article should have done just that — feature Ke'Chic Boutique. But it did not. So, I will share with you what the article failed to share.

Ke'Chic has styled the catwalks of several major local fashion productions including Artscape, Crystal Couture, Richmond Fashion Week and several other fashion events. We've participated in fabulous events produced by local fashion icons such as Harvey Star Washington, Glynn Jackson and DC Fashion Week founder Ean Williams.

Additionally, we are the official wardrobe stylists for Just Look TV and wardrobe sponsors for Cafe Society Models and the Javiere Modeling Agency. Ke'Chic was also last year's special guest stylist and designer for Tim Johnson's Celebrity Birthday Bash in Raleigh, N.C., and, just recently, we provided wardrobe styling for a new reality series that is scheduled to air this fall.

The boutique serves an international clientele, and it has expanded to serve all ethnicities and cultural backgrounds. As a result, we have been invited to participate in Latin Fashion Week. We offer personal wardrobe styling services including personal shopping. Being that we are located near the sorority Graham Cracker, we fully support the Greek community and recently sponsored a chapter of Omicron Theta Zeta for its annual fashion extravaganza. Ke'Chic also participates in various community fundraisers and events, and each fall we donate a homecoming dress to a fashionista who may not be able to afford a dress. We believe community is important and so is giving back to the communities that support us.

We are very excited about the marketing plan that we will roll out on the campus, and I'm positive it will be successful. We invite new customers and organizations to utilize the services of our full-service fashion boutique. I invite you to follow us at www.facebook .com/kechicboutique and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/shop_kechic. We offer online shopping at our website www.kechic.com. We also cater to an audience of what we like to call the "full figured fashionista" at our plus-size site www.curvesbykechic.com.

Lesley Sedgwick is the owner of Ke'Chic Boutique. She can be reached at kechicboutique@yahoo.com